Loaded Latency Test
Measure how much your ping rises while your connection is busy. This is the fastest way to detect bufferbloat, router queueing, and lag during downloads or uploads.
What Loaded Latency Measures
Idle Ping
Your baseline round-trip time when the connection is quiet. This is the latency most simple ping tests report.
Download Loaded Ping
Ping while download traffic fills the connection. Big increases often mean router or ISP queueing.
Bufferbloat Grade
The gap between idle and loaded latency. A small gap feels smooth; a large gap causes lag during normal household use.
Loaded Latency Score Guide
| Ping increase under load | Rating | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| Under 20 ms | Excellent | Gaming, calls, and browsing should stay responsive while downloads run. |
| 20-50 ms | Good | Most households will feel fine, though competitive gaming may notice small spikes. |
| 50-150 ms | Fair | Video calls and games may lag whenever another device uses heavy bandwidth. |
| 150+ ms | Poor | Classic bufferbloat: the connection is fast, but latency collapses under load. |
How to Fix Bad Loaded Latency
- Enable Smart Queue Management, SQM, FQ-CoDel, or CAKE in your router if available.
- Set router bandwidth limits to about 90-95% of your real tested download and upload speed.
- Use Ethernet for latency-sensitive devices like gaming PCs, consoles, and work machines.
- Pause large downloads, cloud backup, and file sync during important calls or games.
- Replace older ISP routers if they do not support modern queue management.
For deeper troubleshooting, read our guides to bufferbloat, lowering ping, and fixing ping spikes.